Regionals or 135

[Flybet3]

My wife is doing what Seven said.

She's home every night, off on weekends, and making twice+ what she would at a regional. In a year or so, she'll head off to a regional where the upgrades are a little quicker.

So she trades 1000h of Turbine SIC for 1000h Baron 135 PIC--but she knows about ice, thunder, leadership, and all those "abstract" concepts the 500 wunderkind are lacking. When she upgrades at minimums she will at least know what the time is.

Plus she can now fly my lazy 'bus driving @ss under the table on instruments.

That sounds great and all, but the guy was talking about a 135 cargo job like Cherry air, Grand air. So with those jobs he wont be home, and will be flying craaaaapy airplanes!

 

[Windsor]

Freight doggin isnt for everyone. It downright sucks at times, but I'll take better pay and a quick upgrade over low pay and better airplanes.

You have to ask yourself where do you want to be in 5 years? Still hanging around a regional or possibly at a major like Landlover said. Personally I'm taking the fast track to turbojet PIC. I'd rather pay my dues to the aviation gods quick and fast than slug it out at a regional.

Doggin is tough. We get dirty, tired, fly at all hours of the clock, fly crappy equipment, do runs into mexico at night with 15 year old basic GPS's and no terrain awareness equipment, hand fly everything except cruise flight, stay in shady hotels (sometimes), fly a 14 hour duty day and eat nothing but what FBO's have in their vending machines, switch from flying all night to flying during the day several times a week, learn the MEL list forwards and backwards, load 4,000lbs of freight by hand, some freight skates and a J-Bar, get screwed out of money by our hated company accountant, fuel planes ourselves (occasionally help the line guy if he's solo), have incompetent "so called" dispatchers, spend a lot of time away from our friends and family, work a lot harder than most pilots have to and we get stuck out on the road for up to 12 days in a row.

If you want a better QOL, fly nicer planes and can afford the absurdly low pay, go to a regional. But dont let people tell you that you wont get a better job later on in your career just because you flew 135. Thats a bunch of crap. Guys move on to bigger and better things from 135 all the time. Remember, its a lot about who you know, not what you know. I've met plenty of good contacts from 135 that will serve me well in about a year and a half when I get my 1000 turbojet PIC time.

 

[Philerup]

So it looks like I should amend my answer to: If you are going to fly cargo, make sure you go to the right company.

 

[Windsor]

Most of the on demand cargo companies are different turds floating in the same toilet. The one exception seems to be USAJet.
Remember, seniority is everything in our profession. Gotta get your turbojet pic and get your resume out asap.

 

[Goose Egg]

She's home every night, off on weekends, and making twice+ what she would at a regional.

The first two alone are worth working the backside of the clock for me, provided it was a scheduled 135 outfit. The pay would just help me get out of debt more quickly.

You have to ask yourself where do you want to be in 5 years? Still hanging around a regional or possibly at a major like Landlover said.

Not really either of those for me, but TPIC seems to open up doors all over the place... And I'd rather have it in 5 years rather than 10, if you understand what I'm saying.

I think the point is that everywhere you go is going to feature some kind of vicissitude. You've just got to figure out which one will work out best for you. I think the CFI set (myself included at times) tends to think that instructing is the only dues-paying you'll have to do. I've learned this is not the case.

-Goose

 

[Tug Driver]

guys have left aji to go directly to swa, netjets, flex, gemini, jetblue, omni, continental main line. just met a fedex guy that left aji in early 2000. that silly comment about not making connections working for a cargo company?? huh? what rock do you live under? have been offered recommendations to all the companies listed above, save fedex.

I see that they've got you towin' the company line now, eh Q?

Just look at LandLover's quote...

135 = 3 coworkers dead in the last 18 months at 2 different employers
121 = best of the best equiptment, yeah low pay year 1, but next year I will be "rich." and i have...A SCHEDULE. 121 reserve totally beats 135 on demand.

Done both and 121 wins by far!

 

[DeltaLima21]

121 --> 135. I recently left Air Midwest (3 years seniority) to take a position with USA Jet. I nearly doubled my paycheck, and worse case senario if I never leave is a DC-9 CA with USA Jet as a career job which right now tops at $173/hr. So far it seems to be the right decision.